Winter 2011

Trustees Receive $27.5 Million to Restore Delaware River Resources Injured by Oil Spill

Athos I tanker lists as it leaks oil into the Delaware River in 2004. USFWS photo.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the other Trustees, including the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the states of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware, received $27.5 million dollars from the U.S. Coast Guard Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund to restore natural resources and lost recreational uses. On November 26, 2004, a large cargo vessel, the Athos I, struck a submerged anchor while docking at the Citgo Refinery in Paulsboro, NJ. The single-hulled vessel released 265,000 gallons of heavy crude oil into the Delaware River. The Trustees determined that 3,628 acres of shoreline, 412 acres of benthic habitat, and 11,869 birds were lost or injured as a result of this spill. In addition, 41,709 trips on the river were affected, with an estimated lost value of $1,319,097.

Under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, the Trustees identified actions to restore, replace, or acquire the equivalent natural resources injured as a result of an oil spill. The Trustees considered 52 potential restoration projects and eventually identified 9 preferred projects, involving marsh restoration, dam removal, oyster reef creation, shoreline restoration, boat ramp improvements, and trail enhancement in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service received approximately $3 million to restore tidal exchange to a 56-acre dredge cell at John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge.